Big Sur

"I will hopefully blog about them tomorrow, or at least that is my intention" Four days later....oh well, I did say hopefully. I fear it is going to get much worse as I have so much non related art work coming up that I am barely going to find the time to sleep, let alone paint. Never mind, I always get my priorities right and I am sure it is better to paint than sleep, and I may be exaggerating how busy I will be....may be....I will know more next week.

Anyway, back to blogging about Big Sur. So getting back on the painting horse did go a little way towards assuaging my holiday blues, and I feel a bit better about that now anyway. The plus point about being delayed with my post is that I can now put two paintings up as I did another one towards the end of last week.

They are both very different.

I think the first one might be finding a permanent home on my wall. Not necessarily because I am super pleased with it but I would like a painting memory of Big Sur and I slightly regret selling the first painting I did of the Grand Canyon.

Big Sur

I don't really have much to say about these two paintings, they are what they are and feel slightly like cheat paintings anyway as they are just copies of photographs. I guess as I took the photos specifically to paint them later - a photograph being considerably more reliable than my memory - I am being a bit harsh.

Big Sur Sea

 Either way, they both turned out pretty well. I hope you like them and I hope I can find some time to do some more, there is nothing quite like needing to do something and not having the time......

Loaded

I have been back for a week now. Already!? How did that happen? More to the point I am already completely behind with everything, and I mean everything. On the plus side I have sorted a few things out so at least I am behind but productive and I have architecture work and money coming in. They are all good things after a long holiday.

I had a couple of print orders to complete on my return and they are done, post holiday painting 1 is complete and post holiday painting number 2 under-way. I will hopefully blog about them tomorrow, or at least that is my intention. Anyone that thinks being an artist just involves the odd painting here and there is crazy. I do more work, updating, spread-sheeting, marketing, updating, message replying, promoting than I would do working for a 9-5 job! Just as well I love it so and it only periodically wears me out. The problem is that there is always something extra I could be doing, or updating, or joining - I am very good at making work for myself - and leaving no time aside for boredom!

So raise a glass to self motivation - my favourite friend (when I have it!)

I have at least managed to sort through my holiday photographs and choose the ones that I think are print worthy. There are more than normal which is a good sign inspiration-wise. I should have more than enough to keep me loaded in painting ideas.

The Painting Horse

So it seems as though I have been on a slight time delay with the last grains of sand falling from my shoes this morning.

Yes, you guessed it. This morning was officially holiday blues day and far enough away time-wise to feel like I had never been away. I am still rested, and I still have happy memories, and I am grateful for England putting on a good show of sunshine for my return but still, it isn't quite like being on holiday. I always seem to get holiday blues quite badly, the jet-lag, the unsteady work, the unsteady money, the unsteady company and my slight artists temperament on my return always seem to get to me, that and the fact my internet is still broken (even after a half an hour telephone call.)

Anyone else not want to play!?

At least one thing about being away is that I have quite a few photographic prints to add to my website and quite a few paintings floating around in the back of my head. I think one sure fire cure for the blues is to get back on the painting horse, it is going to be a battle to see whether I paint the mountains, a sunset, the forest or the sea.

Answers on a postcard.  

Sand in My Shoes

So I meant to write on here that I was going away for a few weeks, but I didn't. I also meant to vaguely update it whilst I was away, but I didn't. I think there is a theme here! I am bad for going on holiday and leaving my electronic life at home, but at least I feel properly rejuvenated, even if I do have rather a lot of stuff to catch up on.

At least, for the moment, I still have sand, in my shoes....

My Left Foot

My internet is still a special shade of slow but I have decided to just multi-task around the slow upload speed and get on with it, everything is almost up together now, but that is why it is almost midnight and Sunday. Normally I would be reading in bed, or watching a film, or asleep, not 'working' but I don't mind, I have a crazy architectural deadline coming up and a holiday to go on, so a few days hard graft will be worth it!  I have had a couple of perks this weekend too, selling my first cushion on Society6 and a giant bespoke 1.2 metre print of Fossil Paving (a photograph of some ammonites taken in Cornwall) and an enquiry about a commission to paint when I get back. Definitely 3 wishes in 1.

But....

What I really wanted to blog about was a film I watched on Thursday (?) of last week called My Left Foot. Just wow. It was amazing. Daniel Day Lewis put in such a sterling performance of a cerebral palsy sufferer that I forgot who he really was. The film was also surprisingly uplifting, educational and inspiring. It was based on the true story of Christy Brown, a painter, writer and 'a character' who overcame tremendous odds to become a successful artist. I can't recommend this film enough, I was totally blown away!

Happy Valentines Day

Seriously internet, you are killing me.

I believe it is customary today to say HAPPY VALENTINES DAY! I have already shared the love by announcing the two winners of my competition that has been running for the last week or so. It is nice to give something back to all the people who have been supporting me. I had 71 entries in the end which was impressive as I was slightly worried I would only have about 3, I needed one more though as then it would have been an inverted 27 and I am sure that would have been ultra lucky. I shall be looking forward to running my next competition when I have figured out what it is.....

(And looking forward to resuming a usual service when SOMEBODY FIXES MY DAMNED BROADBAND CONNECTION or someone finds where I put my patience....)

Snail

So after the excitement of Society 6 and filling my store with cushions, mugs, clocks and all things nice, and just about resisting the urge to buy them all for myself (buying my own products would be pretty vain right?! But I am so doing it) Anyway....after all of that I have had the world's most frustrating day today.

I am about to go on a longish holiday, or as I like to call it an 'inspiration sabbatical' (Artist's technical term, honest) and I have quite a bit I need to prepare and sort out before I leave. This would imply that it is not a good time for my internet to decide to turn into a snail or for me to realise my mobile contract won't let me use my phone as a wi-fi hotspot in internet emergencies.

Therefore can you guess what happened today? Yes. My internet turned into a snail and then I found out I can't use my phone as a wi-fi hotspot. Well that is just super. After trying to download about 500kb of emails which seem to take ten minutes I knew I needed to step away from the open window and put my computer back down (when did I pick that up?). So... I cleaned the house instead, went and worked off some steam at zumba and wrote a blog post as therapy. Productive in a way I suppose.

Please internet, work like normal tomorrow, I beg of you.

I fear tomorrow may be a long day, or at least a slow one. How on earth did people do work before the internet!?